As a new groomer I haven't yet groomed a Maltese. I got a call to do one and she is coming on Saturday. The owner wants a puppy clip but she has a specific way she wants the face done. She feels the Maltese's face is too "pointy looking such as a poodle and would like it a little rounder looking". I think I know how to round it a little better - maybe clip the ears and beard and mustache a little shorter and blend them in with the face. Does anyone agree or am I way off on this one. Any advice is soooooooo welcome because the owner knows exactly what she wants and, of course, I want to accomodate her. I'm a little nervous. Any suggestions? THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

tilly (64.12.105.153)

Posted on Friday, May 24, 2002 - 6:35 pm:

J a safe round head for me on a maltease is use a 4f on the top of the head a skim. Then round the sides first ear to chin then under chin does that make sense to ya? Remember take a very little at a time side to side I always say to myself " A little is alot" don't take much to change the total look.

On a rounded face- any type of dog, shih tzu, westie, maltese, I think it really helps to keep the beard short and have the hair around the mouth to come up gradually toward the nose. I also hold the head to the side, brush the hair downward, and make sure it is rounded from the ear, down the jaw, to the tip of the nose. It should look like a "C" on it's side. Sometimes I see a Maltese come in that has so much hair on it's face and head that it is all laying flat with long ears and a long beard- how depressing! Trim it short so it stands up better. Also, sometimes they have very thin hair and it just won't stand up at all. Make sure to take this into consideration when examining the dog before the owner leaves. I love to take a bad teddy bear haircut with a depressingly long face and round up the head and ears. The owners come in and say, "He/She looks just like she used to when she was a puppy!" Two more things, make sure it is ok to trim the ear length, some owners are touchy about that and it helps to have curved shears. Good luck and don't stress about it.

While you are discussing faces. Any tips on how to trim beards, faces etc. when it is impossible to get a good look at the dog with their mouth shut, ears up, etc.? I mean when you have trimmed and want to get an overall look to see if sides are even, etc. I've tried standing in front of them calling them, etc. Though it seems the best way is when I can catch them looking straight into the mirror or simply stand back for a couple minutes. Any other ideas?

I comb the beard forward towards the nose and trim the hair that extends past he nose. Point your scissors down and cut the hair towards the chin. I hope this makes since. I also use a 4 or a 3 on the head. I will see if I can get a pic to show ya how I do this. This makes the face look round instead of blocked. Hope that helps.

Glad you all are helping on this one. I have a Maltese who belongs to an 89 year old woman, who insists that she owns a Bichon! She wants him cut like that, and its impossible! I can't get the head to look like anything at all, and I know she would freak if I trimmed the ears. I guess I will have to try these suggstions, and a good one I got from kvp, and see how she likes it. It always grows, so she shouldn't mind if I experiment.

JReyes (152.163.194.203)

Posted on Saturday, May 25, 2002 - 9:05 pm:

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! The advice I received from everyone regarding the Maltese face is soooooooo appreciated! I got through the grooming and the owner was sooooooo satisfied - she said she will definitely be coming back! Thanks to everyone here I got through the grooming with alot less anxiety than I had before I asked my question here. I can't tell you how grateful I am to all! Love, JReyes

Oh, I love them all! But I have to say that I love those long ears, Kimberly. Bet mom is one of those customers who says on each and every visit "DON'T trim her ears!!!" They are just darling, though

Louie, you're maltese looks like the ones I see at my shop. I like the smile!

Ferurizonly, how DO you get those beautiful feet so round and tidy? They look like a show cockers feet! Breathtaking! And I like the way you painted the paw prints and bone stencil on you're crates, that is a cute idea, mind if I steal it?

Sure steal it, BUT they are stickers. I bought black sticky tape at Home Hardware, I am sure you can find something at any craft store then just designed the paw , a lot of cutting........and there it is...................as for the legs, its not perfect, lots of pickiness,and "stand Pistache!" ARGH Stand Pistache! I don't use curves (scissors) half the time I forget about them! The lady who trained me could do a Standard Leg full lamb in less than 5 minutes, made me sick, thought I would never be able to do that, groaning while I was still working on my first poodle foot (30 minutes later). I went to her Kennel 5 weekends, thats it, the rest I learned from Dog Shows, pictures, and my Grooming for Dummies book lololol

I still am learning, my least liked grooms are Spaniels. Still working on correct balance, and cocker skirts but it will come.........its only been..........ahhhh 19 years hahahahahaha.

I am having trouble with Maltese faces, too. I am not sure how to trim the eyebrows. Should I angle them down like you do a shih tzu? Or should I just be cutting right above the eyes and let the rest just fall down the sides? I actually did two Malteses the other day. I do have a picture of both. I just don't have time to go look for them this morning. Maybe I'll post them later and you guys can tell me what you think. They were both really matted, of course. I used a 4 on them to get the blade to go through. She wanted the faces shortened up, but still wanted to keep the Maltese look.

What a precious doll! Great job....I love it! I can't believe you got that look just using thinners. Wow! I never did learn to use the thinners very well. Seems I am always guessing with them. Is there a certain angle you should use with them? Like when scissoring legs with regular shears...scissor down and etc. Are you suppose to scissor down say on the cheeks with the thinners? How do you position them on top of the head?

Here is a "maltipoo" that in my opinion doesn't have a lick of "poo" in her, but anyway, I've done her since she was a baby and here's her photo as she turned about a year or so... mom had me do her like this as she grew.. then she decided she wanted her to look like a puppy again... so her second photo (below this first one) is the after result... (for her to look like a puppy again).

Before I actually did the head, I called her to make certain she knew the ears HAD to go... and she said she trusted me, so I did it and LOVED it... The after clip (head) is a 3/4" clipper comb in reverse all over, including the ears (but go down with the comb instead of reversed on the ears)... and then go over with thinners to even up where needed... super easy.